Defective Headlines
The main headlines for the JEP said “Half of vehicles stopped during Jersey road safety campaign are issued with defect notices”
But the text underneath gave the real picture.
HALF of the 50 commercial vehicles stopped during the first few hours of a road safety campaign were issued with defect notices – and one was in such poor condition it was taken off the road.
It doesn’t say if only commercial vehicles were targeted, but these clearly seem to be the main miscreants when it comes to driving defective vehicles.
It is interesting to look at other reports. The official reports, where the exists – press releases by the States of Jersey Police, give far more detail whereas the JEP tends to go for the headline figure, and often does not tell how many vehicles were in the check.
In 2010, there was a check and it was reported on the police website that “a number of vehicle registration and driving licence problems were found in the 191 vehicles that passed through a St. Clement road check on Tuesday 8 June 2010..
It noted “One large commercial vehicle with a number of serious defects, was taken off the road and fourteen other drivers were issued with defect notices.”
In 2007 another check gave this:
“A further five vehicles were impounded in a St Peter road check bringing the total number of vehicles impounded, in one week, to nine. Three commercial vehicles were impounded; Two were sent directly back to a workshop for repairs to oil leaks and to replace tyres. One large commercial vehicle was impounded with defective brakes.”
It also goes on to state: "Seventeen drivers were issued with defect notices requiring them to present their vehicle at DVS, with defects rectified. Defects included bodywork, exhaust systems, oil leaks, mirrors and lighting."
The main headlines for the JEP said “Half of vehicles stopped during Jersey road safety campaign are issued with defect notices”
But the text underneath gave the real picture.
HALF of the 50 commercial vehicles stopped during the first few hours of a road safety campaign were issued with defect notices – and one was in such poor condition it was taken off the road.
It doesn’t say if only commercial vehicles were targeted, but these clearly seem to be the main miscreants when it comes to driving defective vehicles.
It is interesting to look at other reports. The official reports, where the exists – press releases by the States of Jersey Police, give far more detail whereas the JEP tends to go for the headline figure, and often does not tell how many vehicles were in the check.
In 2010, there was a check and it was reported on the police website that “a number of vehicle registration and driving licence problems were found in the 191 vehicles that passed through a St. Clement road check on Tuesday 8 June 2010..
It noted “One large commercial vehicle with a number of serious defects, was taken off the road and fourteen other drivers were issued with defect notices.”
In 2007 another check gave this:
“A further five vehicles were impounded in a St Peter road check bringing the total number of vehicles impounded, in one week, to nine. Three commercial vehicles were impounded; Two were sent directly back to a workshop for repairs to oil leaks and to replace tyres. One large commercial vehicle was impounded with defective brakes.”
It also goes on to state: "Seventeen drivers were issued with defect notices requiring them to present their vehicle at DVS, with defects rectified. Defects included bodywork, exhaust systems, oil leaks, mirrors and lighting."
From a statistical point of view, however, this is a disappointment. We don't know how many had just defective lights - a brake light not working, perhaps? I once was stopped and needed to get a rear number plate light fixed. A defect in bodywork or an exhaust or oil leak needs a lot more work done that just changing a bulb, and what this report does not give is a breakdown of the different kinds of defect.
2007 also had a good report on a Victoria Avenue check:
“2 commercial vehicles were taken off the road as they were extremely defective 1 vehicle owner agreed to scrap his vehicle” 79 vehicles were checked, so the percentage here taken off the road is higher at 3%.
It also says:
"18 defect notices were issued requiring drivers to repair their vehicles and come back to DVS for a recheck. The main defects spotted were defects in bodywork, tyres, oil leaks, and incorrect registration details."
I wasn't aware that a defect included incorrect registration details, and I'm not entirely sure how that was spotted either, but that classification alongside physical attributes of the vehicle as a defect seems strange to me.
And one in St Mary in 2007:
“Between 7 am and 9 am, 534 vehicles were stopped. Some minor offences were noted. These included cracked glass on headlights, rust spots, and leaks from engines. In total, 14 minor defects were dealt with by DVS, and ten minor offences were dealt with by Police.”
None were taken off the road. Again there's no breakdown of the different kinds of defects.Or for that matter any indication as to when a rust spot is significant, as for instance if the metal is corroded and unable to withstand ‘thumb’ pressure without crumbling or permanent distortion
A 2012 report is also detailed of a check near Jersey Bowl:
952 vehicles passed through the check with 11 cars warned to repair the damage to their cars and present them at DVS within a week. Two further cars were taken off the road because of serious structural defects including holes in the bodywork, unsecured batteries and bald tyres. That’s 0.2% taken off the road.
This report, although from the Jersey police, is very sparse on details - nothing is given in the report of what the "damage to their cars" entailed.
2009 noted that:
“Of the 1200 vehicles that passed through a St Peter road check, six vehicles were impounded, eight drivers, including two without valid driving licences, were reported for various offences, and 22 drivers were issued with defect notices.”
This is the best reporting in the check, as it gives a sense of perspective. 6 from 1200 is 0.5%, so it gives a sense of how widespread the problem is, unlike most of the other reports.
It also gives details of the kinds of problems:
Two vehicles, a medium sized van with defective brakes and bodywork and a car with defective bodywork, tyre and excessive oil leaks, were impounded to DVS for further inspection. A small van was impounded at the check until a defective tyre had been replaced, whilst two motorcycles with defective brakes, and a pick up van with two defective tyres, were impounded to a workshop for repair.
“2 commercial vehicles were taken off the road as they were extremely defective 1 vehicle owner agreed to scrap his vehicle” 79 vehicles were checked, so the percentage here taken off the road is higher at 3%.
It also says:
"18 defect notices were issued requiring drivers to repair their vehicles and come back to DVS for a recheck. The main defects spotted were defects in bodywork, tyres, oil leaks, and incorrect registration details."
I wasn't aware that a defect included incorrect registration details, and I'm not entirely sure how that was spotted either, but that classification alongside physical attributes of the vehicle as a defect seems strange to me.
And one in St Mary in 2007:
“Between 7 am and 9 am, 534 vehicles were stopped. Some minor offences were noted. These included cracked glass on headlights, rust spots, and leaks from engines. In total, 14 minor defects were dealt with by DVS, and ten minor offences were dealt with by Police.”
None were taken off the road. Again there's no breakdown of the different kinds of defects.Or for that matter any indication as to when a rust spot is significant, as for instance if the metal is corroded and unable to withstand ‘thumb’ pressure without crumbling or permanent distortion
A 2012 report is also detailed of a check near Jersey Bowl:
952 vehicles passed through the check with 11 cars warned to repair the damage to their cars and present them at DVS within a week. Two further cars were taken off the road because of serious structural defects including holes in the bodywork, unsecured batteries and bald tyres. That’s 0.2% taken off the road.
This report, although from the Jersey police, is very sparse on details - nothing is given in the report of what the "damage to their cars" entailed.
2009 noted that:
“Of the 1200 vehicles that passed through a St Peter road check, six vehicles were impounded, eight drivers, including two without valid driving licences, were reported for various offences, and 22 drivers were issued with defect notices.”
This is the best reporting in the check, as it gives a sense of perspective. 6 from 1200 is 0.5%, so it gives a sense of how widespread the problem is, unlike most of the other reports.
It also gives details of the kinds of problems:
Two vehicles, a medium sized van with defective brakes and bodywork and a car with defective bodywork, tyre and excessive oil leaks, were impounded to DVS for further inspection. A small van was impounded at the check until a defective tyre had been replaced, whilst two motorcycles with defective brakes, and a pick up van with two defective tyres, were impounded to a workshop for repair.
"Defects included oil leaks, bodywork, lighting, tyres, mirrors and windscreen wipers. "
"Inspector of Motor Traffic, Alan Muir said: “This was another very busy check, where more commercial vehicles were found with defects that should have been spotted and rectified during routine maintenance or driver checks. Fortunately for one driver and his passenger, a potentially serious crash was prevented. His van suffered brake failure in the process of officers investigating a brake defect, identified during initial inspection of the vehicle. I cannot emphasise enough the importance of regular maintenance. "
In conclusion
In conclusion
Reporting of vehicle defects in road checks is widely variable, which makes it almost impossible to conduct what is really needed - a proper statistical analysis of the percentage of vehicles with defects, the kinds of vehicles (commercial / private), and a detailed breakdown of the numbers of different defects found.
As far as can be seen from the reports, the more serious problems seem to lie with commercial vehicles, and some kind of proper checking regime, an MOT light, would certainly address that problem.
When it comes to private vehicles, the kinds of defects - such as one brake light not working - may well not in fact be the kind of defect picked up in an MOT. If one had some statistics on the kind of defect, and whether most were of this nature, it would be helpful in a periodic educational programme to get drivers to check their vehicles, and get others to help them. Rear brake lights are especially hard to spot if defective.
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